It's All About the Seniors

Mar 13, 2013

In the past 2 weeks, several of our various athletic teams have
honored their seniors on Senior Night, and provided them gifts and
mementos of their time as a student athlete at King.
Throughout the year, all of our teams will honor their seniors in
some way. To me, these are some of the most important moments
of the year – an opportunity to recognize and honor student
athletes who have dedicated countless hours to a program, have shed
blood, sweat and tears to make the program better.

As a coach, you get to know your student athletes pretty
well. This relationship begins while they are still in high
school, during the recruiting process, as you visit their schools
and homes, and spend countless hours on the phone with them.
You get to know their families, and come to view the student
athletes as your own son or daughter. It’s natural, and
it’s a wonderful experience.

By the time they are seniors, you’ve typically known them
for at least 5 years (maybe less if they transferred, more if they
redshirted), and you’ve watched them grow from a 17 year old
kid, wide-eyed and immature, into a 22 year old young woman or
man. They’ve earned their college degree, and have a
good handle on the direction of their life and career. Of
course that direction may change, and that’s OK, but
you’ve not only watched them grow and mature, but
you’ve played a role in that process.

Not every student athlete you recruit makes it all 4
years. While they may remain at the school and graduate,
it’s not uncommon for 25-50% of the student athletes who
enter as freshman to leave the team for one reason or
another. Maybe it was an injury, maybe they decided to pursue
other interests, but whatever the reason, every recruiting class
sees some attrition over a 4 year period.

That’s a big part of what makes Senior Night
special. These student athletes have remained committed
through adversity and challenges; through injury; through personal
trials; through good times and bad times in
competition. That’s not meant to be a negative
reflection on any student athlete who doesn’t make it four
years. Some of the strongest relationships I still have with
student athletes I recruited are the ones who did not play 4 years
– everyone has justifiable reasons for the decisions they
make. But, those who endure are the ones who impact your
program as a coach.

By the time a student athlete is a senior, they understand your
coaching style. They know what you expect, how you coach, how
you teach – they know the plays, the signs –
they’re captains and leaders, and become in many ways an
extension of the coaching staff. In many cases, you can
look at the successful teams, and typically the most successful
teams have great senior leadership.

I have great admiration for the numerous “big time”
Division I coaches who, when given an opportunity in front of a
camera, praise their seniors. Even if their seniors
aren’t the star of the game or the best player, they
attribute their success to the seniors. I’m a big fan
of Jim Tressel. Despite his mistakes at Ohio State, he always
praised his seniors, and talked about them at every
opportunity. And not just to the media – he impressed
upon his team the importance of the seniors in the success of the
team. It was genuine. Many other coaches at all levels
understand this and are quick to credit them with the
success. Those are smart coaches.

Senior day always was, and is, very emotional for me. Four
years of blood, sweat, and tears, all poured into one special game,
where you are honored and have the opportunity to give it your all
one last time in front of the home crowd. I still remember my
senior day, a long time ago, as a member of the Kenyon College
baseball team. I wasn’t a great hitter or a great
player, but I like to think I made the program a little better in
four years. And, I’ll never forget going 2 for 3 at the
plate and coming in out of the bullpen to get the save on that
special day.

I once coached a girl at Rhodes who held the single season for
home runs. On senior day, one of her underclass teammates
homered to tie her record. I pulled her out of the game,
because I didn’t want her to break the record of a senior on
senior day. She broke it the next game, but I felt it was
important that the focus remain on the seniors and those memories
continue to be great memories (we still won the game.)

Every senior day, as I watch our seniors walk onto the field or
court, accompanied by their families, I get a little
emotional. It’s a big day for them, but more
importantly a chance for their teammates, coaches, and fans to
honor and recognize them. All of our student athletes are
incredible – as people and as athletes – but seniors
are special. They are the core of your program, the core of
the team. They set the example for the
underclassmen.